By: Spencer Neff
April 21, 2022

Thursday Results Combined Practice Results

After a delay of more than four hours at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the 32 cars entered for next month’s Indianapolis 500 took to the track for a second day of testing on the 2.5-mile oval in Speedway, Indiana.

On Wednesday, the session was concluded early following multiple spins in the warmup lane on the south end of the speedway.

Following a lengthy night of addressing the issue (hear more from IMS President Doug Boles here), the second day of track time began.

Within the first 30 minutes on track, Dreyer and Reinbold’s Sage Karam and Arrow McLaren SP’s Juan Pablo Montoya completed their refresher programs.

Once the four-hour session concluded, points leader Josef Newgarden was on top of the speed carts. Late in the day, the Team Penske driver posted a best lap of 229.519 (39.2125 seconds).

Despite winning 22 races and two championships, the 12th-year driver is still looking for his first Indianapolis 500 win. Previously, his best results were in 2016, when he started second and finished third.

Finishing the day just .0157 of a second back of Newgarden was Takuma Sato of Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing. The 2017 and 2020 race winner was the fastest among the Honda teams, behind Newgarden’s Chevrolet.

On the no-tow chart, Ed Carpenter Racing’s Rinus VeeKay notched best speed of the afternoon (221.314). Last year, VeeKay followed up his first career win at the road course 15 days earlier by starting third and leading 32 laps before finishing eighth at the Indianapolis 500.

After crashing late in yesterday’s practice, four-time and defending race winner Helio Castroneves did not run in today’s session. His Meyer Shank Racing team brought his car back to their shop in Pataskala, Ohio for repairs. Otherwise, all 31 drivers turned laps at speed.

Opening Practice for the 106th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge is 26 days away but there are still two more points-paying races before that day.

Up Next

Next week, the NTT INDYCAR SERIES returns to action at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama. 

Practice 1 for the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama begins at 4:00 p.m. Eastern on April 29. Coverage for the 90-lap race is set for 1:00 p.m. Eastern on May 1.

IndyCar1909 will have ongoing coverage of all the latest NTT INDYCAR SERIES news and developments through our site and various social media platforms.

Header Image By Chris Jones/INDYCAR